JIM’S INSIGHTS

New Keynote Topic: The Internet of Things: Disruption and Opportunity in an Era of Pervasive Connectivity

Every industry is set to be transformed as an era of hyper connectivity becomes the new norm. The result? Massive business model disruption; the rapid emergence of new competitors; industries in which customers empowered with mobile devices control a wide variety of devices that are a part of their daily lives; unique opportunities for deep […]

Article: Going fast? The Future Will Be Faster

A few weeks ago, I was the closing keynote speaker for Potato Expo 2015 in Orlando, with a talk titled “

Trend: Mobile is Eating Retail

University Business Mag quotes me in 2015 Education Forecast

25 Trends for 2025 (Can you imagine how different your future might be ten years from now?)

This post was written in 2014 – and now, in 2025, it’s trending! As you read it, keep in mind that it’s 11 years old! On January 3, 2025, Jim wrote a post that looks at the accuracy – and lack thereof – of the 25 predictions he made in this post in 2014 about […]

Speed and agility in the retail sector

The rate of change in the retail sector is going from ‘fast to furious’ if you pardon the cliche. I’ll be outlining this issue when I speak to a small group of folks in the retail sector in New York in early January at an invitation only event. The problem? Most retailers are too focused at […]

Augmented Reality and the World of Retail…

Earlier this year, I was featured in the UK’s Retail NewsAgent 125th anniversary publication, with a variety of comments on trends that will impact the retail space, such as this quick quote which commented on the integration of Siri, automobiles and the shopping experience. I just came across this additional quote in one of the […]

Nomadic workers and the future of careers

Here’s a video clip from a recent keynote — during the Q&A, I was asked by one member of the audience about what happens to careers in a world in which ‘the future belongs to those who are fast.’ Here’s my response! There’s more on this topic in the Human Capital section of my website, […]

A really cool keynote summary!

Earlier this week, I was a keynote speaker at HealthAchieve 2014, one of the largest healthcare conferences in North America. My talk was centered around the theme of ‘Healthcare 2020.” I was thrilled to see that my talk was going to be ‘graphically recorded’ in real-time. Here’s the result! Click on the image for an […]

Video: The new acquisition of knowledge and the outsourcing of gaming!

In this clip, I’m doing the opening keynote for the American Society of Testing Professionals — and I am speaking about how the new generation of students acquires and ingests knowledge. Food for thought in terms of disruption of the education industry! What’s fascinating is the story I tell – how one of my sons has […]

Video: “A blistering page of innovation…”

Back in June, I was invited to open The BigM, a major manufacturing conference held in Detroit; I followed President Obama’s Treasury Secretary, Penny Pritzker on stage. There were about 1,000 folks in the room – this is a pretty significant conference that is focused on the renaissance that is North American manufacturing. This is […]

FutureVision’s Day-One Visionaries: Carroll, Thompson, Stone

A week ago, I had the pleasure to open the FutureVision, “an invitation-only event designed for the industry’s retail leaders, is an exclusive relationship-building event packed with industry insights.” I shared the stage with some pretty impressive visionaries! It’s a small, intimate 50 CEO level event held in Sonoma County, California, with the focus being […]

The Next 90 in HealthCare

The Ontario Hospital Association — based in Canada — is celebrating it’s 90th year. As part of that, it arranged for a number of experts to comment on the future of healthcare, and is running this in a site that “looks at the next 90 years.” They asked me to contribute a piece. I’m still […]

Trend : The impact of crowdfunding / crowdsourcing on R&D

GE is running an article, A Fresh Perspective from Many Minds, that explores the impact of crowdfunding on the world of R&D. I’ve long been pointing out that such efforts are accelerating R&D in countless industries, and in many cases, are challenging incumbent ‘owners of the industry.’ For example, I recently spent time with a company […]

Trend: Could the Energy Industry be “MP3’d?”

If anything, the year 2015 is going to be the year of ‘continuous business model disruption.’ It’s happening everywhere. The CEO of a major US energy company hired me to do a video that he would use on stage as part of the opening of a big energy conference. Here’s the result — could the […]

Article: “Will You Be Ranching Like The Jetsons In 10 Years?”

I recently spoke at the Cattle Feeders Business Summit in Denver. Turns out the folks at Beef Magazine were in the audience, and here’s their report on my keynote! —– Will You Be Ranching Like The Jetsons In 10 Years? – Beef Magazine (link to article) “What will the beef industry look like in 10 years?” […]

Trend: “…..they recognise me and run a customised commercial on an in-store TV….”

Some months back, the folks at Retail NewsAgent in the UK sent me a series of questions asking about the future of retail. They were busy preparing for their 125th anniversary issue, and were interviewing a number of fellow futurists for insight into the trends that might shape and impact the sector in the future. […]

Trend: “The Future of Careers and Vertical Farming Infrastructure Managers!”

Here’s a fun little video clip from a keynote this February, when I opened the annual conference for the Association of Test Publishers. These are the folks who manage the LSAT, GMAT’s and other professional skill tests. We are in a time that has us witnessing the rapid emergence of all kinds of new careers. […]

Trend: The Future of Insurance, and the Actuarial Profession

The American Academy of Actuaries has just released their July / August edition of Contingencies Magazine, with an article about the impact of technology on actuarial practice. It’s a great article: with quotes such as this, you know its presenting some challenging ideas as to how insurance industry, and the actuarial profession that assesses risk, […]

Trend: The Disappearance of Cash!

CNBC interviewed me a few weeks ago on the question of “trends that could shake up the financial industry.” Over the years, I’ve done thousands of such interviews. They just ran the resulting article, “4 Trends Changing the Way You Manage Money.“ A couple of key points: The article observes: Last year Accenture, a global […]

The Renaissance That Is North American Manufacturing!

I was in Detroit last week, for an opening talk for the TheBigM – Manufacturing conference. I had two roles to play : I was a speaker for the evening Gala Celebration, and was scheduled for an opening keynote the next morning to open the conference. Of course, when you live and work in the […]

Medical Device Innovation – Reinventing Revenue at High Speed!

I’m featured, this month, in an article in Medical Products Outsourcing Magazine, entitled “Artful Adaptation: Packaging and sterilization providers must keep pace with rapid change to innovate, grow and improve product safety.” You can read the full article here — it’s well worth a read! Very much focused on several of my major themes, include that organizations […]

Business Model Transformation, and my Keynote for NASA!

It was a year ago today that my son Willie and I travelled to NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, outside of  Washington, where I was to deliver a keynote for a senior leadership team. The theme of my talk? In the grand scheme of things, over the long term, “the business of space is changing,” […]

I’m Opening “The Big M: Manufacturing Convergence” Conference in Detroit!

Final preparation in the home office here for what will prove to be a fun event next week! I’m headlining both the dinner, and am part of the opening events for “The Big M: Manufacturing Conference” in Detroit. On Monday night, I will be speaking to a packed audience of manufacturing executives and engineers at the SME Gala […]